The Presbyterian Church in Ireland has elected Dr Trevor Morrow as its new Moderator. Dr Morrow, who has been a minister at Lucan Presbyterian church in Dublin for the past 17 years, will take over from Dr John Lockington in June.
The new Moderator said he was delighted at his appointment. "This is a great honour not only for myself, but for the Presbyterian community in the Republic."
Dr Morrow received 10 of the 21 votes, with Ards, North Belfast, South Belfast, Carrickfergus, Donegal, Down, Dromore, Dublin, Monaghan and Omagh voting for him. His closest rival, the Rev Alastair Dunlop, from Knock in Belfast, received eight votes. Dr Morrow becomes the youngest moderator. He is also the first minister from the Republic to be chosen for the post since the Rev James Park in 1964.
Dr Morrow (51) is considered to be a liberal. While holding on to traditional Presbyterian values, he was described by a church spokesman as "firmly having his feet in the 21st century".
The new moderator was born and brought up in Lisburn, Co Antrim. He was educated at Friends School, Lisburn, Magee College, Derry, Trinity College Dublin and New College, Edinburgh. He also spent two years researching his doctoral thesis at Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia.
Dr Morrow is known to be committed to reconciliation and was one of the instigators of the Nexus Ireland project, established in 1987, an evangelical reconciliation initiative of the Presbyterian Youth Board sponsored in part by the Department of Foreign Affairs and the International Fund for Ireland. The project is aimed at challenging the traditional tribal loyalties of young people in Ireland.
He was also a co-convenor of 2020 Vision, organised by the Presbyterian Church in Coleraine, Co Antrim, in 1998 to discuss how the church needed to change and develop an effective ministry in the new millennium.
Dr Morrow is married to Carys and has two adult children, Peter and Ceri.